


Not a Dream

by propheticfire



Series: Tumblr Prompts Fulfilled [1]
Category: Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Fix-it fic, Gen, Sort Of, hints of cloneshipping, if you want to take it that way, long-lost brothers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-13
Updated: 2017-11-13
Packaged: 2019-02-01 17:59:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 992
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12710049
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/propheticfire/pseuds/propheticfire
Summary: But…he’d been there.Seenhim.Spoketo him. Had it all been a dream? He’d dreamed of that moment, he had, for so long. Seeing that face, hearing that voice, holding those arms. Dreams that would never come true. Because he wasgone.





	Not a Dream

**Author's Note:**

  * For [kristsune](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kristsune/gifts).



> kristsune requested the prompt, "hey, i’ve got you. it’s okay." with Fives and Echo. Originally meant to stand alone, it morphed into a sequel piece to [Not an Echo](http://archiveofourown.org/works/12613532). Enjoy this one on its own, or go read the other as well.

_The warehouse––General Skywalker and the Captain––trying to talk to them, trying to make them see––they wouldn’t believe––suddenly soldiers––brothers––and Commander Fox, and he was not going back to the Chancellor, would_ never _go back to the Chancellor, they’d have to_ kill _him first––shots fired––gasping––Rex’s face, swimming in his vision––_

Fives woke with a start. The cool lighting and soft beeps that greeted his senses were immediately familiar. Medbay. He was in the medbay. Why was he in the medbay? He’d been…shot, that’s right. Fox. The warehouse.

Fives put a hand to his chest. Odd, no pain. Beneath his fingers, a thin, soft fabric. Not his blacks. Not even a bandage. Just a…civilian shirt? And a jacket of some kind, the weight on his arms told him. Slowly, he moved an arm beneath the shirt, tracing the pattern of old scars up toward his chest. There was a scar there too. Yes, a scar––not a wound. Long-since healed over. A memory. Right, right, the escape, and then he’d gone into hiding. And he’d come to see Rex and to catch up on the gossip, but then…

_“I know you don’t recognize me…”––with the sunken face, the durasteel arm––“But I’m here.”––the eyes that saw right through him–––“I’m alive.”––his name on those lips––“I’m not a ghost.”––that voice, that sweet, sweet voice––“I’m not an…”_

“ECHO!”

Fives bolted upright in the bed. His vision hazed for a moment as his heart pounded in his chest and his blood tried to keep up with the movement. He turned his head, feeling the room swim around him. Just more beds. He turned the other way. More beds. Nothing. No one. Just the throbbing in his head and the spinning room. But…he’d been there. _Seen_ him. _Spoke_ to him. Had it all been a dream? He’d dreamed of that moment, he had, for so long. Seeing that face, hearing that voice, holding those arms. Dreams that would never come true. Because he was _gone_. Gone, and it was about time he faced that, didn’t he think? Stop having the dreams. Just stop. Please, just stop.

Fives sighed, and let his eyelids drift shut. The throbbing in his head felt everywhere and nowhere. And even with his eyes closed, the room felt as though it were dancing around him. There had to be something nearby that could help with that. Kix should be here–– _someone_ should be here––but he’d just have to take matters into his own hands. He’d been an ARC trooper after all; he could still administer his own painkiller.

He opened his eyes, to see––

Someone in the medbay doorway. Someone with a durasteel arm, and a sunken face, and eyes that still managed to sparkle.

He blinked. The figure didn’t waver, didn’t vanish. He gulped in a breath. The figure’s lips drew up in a soft smile. A wave of tingling swept across his skin, as his chest tightened hard enough to force a whimper out of him. It’s not a dream. _It’s not a dream, it’s not a dream._

Fives launched himself off of the bed. Took three stumbling steps, and the room betrayed him, sending him crashing to the floor. In a second, a strong arm encircled him, holding him close to a chest that was still warm, still familiar, despite everything. Fives choked out a sob.

“ _Echo!”_

Echo’s voice–– _his sweet voice_ ––came low and gentle into his ear. “Hey, hey, I’ve got you. It’s okay. It’s okay. Shh, shh, I’ve got you, it’s okay.”

_“Echo…”_

“It’s me, it’s me Fives, I’m here, I’m here now. I’m here.”

Fives buried his face in the soft padding of Echo’s bodysuit. The soldier in him dimly registered that Echo’s chestplate was gone, but the thought was chased away by strong fingers carding through his hair. Each scritch of Echo’s hand sent a jolt of aching numbness through his body. It was _real, it was real_ , it was _Echo_ and it was _real…_ Tears flowed from his eyes, dampening the bodysuit. “ _Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo…”_

Echo’s soothing voice washed over him again. “I’m here. I’m here Fives.” When Fives stopped shaking, every drop of water wrung from his eyes, every muscle drained and limp, Echo shifted, pulling Fives around to rest with his back against Echo’s chest. Echo’s fingers continued to stroke through his hair. He made to wrap the other arm around Fives’ chest, but hesitated. The durasteel shaft that had once been Echo’s forearm hovered above Fives. But Fives didn’t care. He reached up and pulled the bar into his chest, willing Echo to hold him closer.

“It’s different,” Echo said finally, after a moment of quiet. “A lot of things about me are different now.”

“Doesn’t matter,” Fives murmured, “you’re here.”

Fives felt the smile that Echo hid in his hair. “And _you’re_ here,” Echo replied. “To be honest, when I walked off that gunship, I didn’t know I’d be seeing you either.” He chuckled. “Think I took it better than you did, _vod._ You hit your head pretty hard when you passed out.”

Fives tried to chuckle back, but the sound was choked off by the lump that rose in his throat. “Echo I…thought you died. I _saw_ you _die_. Saw your helmet… Couldn’t go back, I couldn’t go back, Echo I’m _sorry…”_

Echo placed a kiss to the top of his head. “I know. It’s okay, I know. I know that now. I forgive you. I forgive you, I know.”

Fives twisted his head back to look up at Echo. So different. That face was so different. And yet, as he caught Echo’s gaze, he saw the same fondness, the same life, the same _love_ that had always been there. It didn’t matter if the room was still spinning slightly, he was _home_.

“It’s good to see you again, brother.”


End file.
